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Recently, the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Housing and Urban Affairs flagged the need for single and comprehensive legislation for all the Metro rail networks in the country and opposed the existing three central acts. All metro rail projects are covered under the legal framework of the Metro Railways (Construction of Works) Act, 1978; …

Recently, Smart Solutions Challenge and Inclusive Cities Awards 2022 were awarded by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs. In the category of early-stage innovations, the winner was a wearable technology product, Fifth Sense by Glovatrix Pvt. Ltd. This product translates sign language gestures to speech and text using sensors and Artificial Intelligence In the …

Recently, the Ministry of Education informed Lok Sabha that, during 2021-22, more than 3 Lakh women were trained under Pradhan Mantri Kaushal VikasYojana (PMKVY) scheme. Skill India Mission was launched by the government in 2015 under which the flagship scheme Pradhan Mantri Kaushal VikasYojana (PMKVY) is run. It aims to train over 40 …

Recently, Microsoft has partnered with the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE), and Capacity Building Commission (CBC) to empower India’s civil servants with future-ready skills. The partnership under the project ‘Capacity Building by MSDE in Microsoft Digital Productivity Skills’ aims to enhance the functional computer literacy of nearly 2.5 million civil …

Recently, the Minister of Education addressed the G-20 Education Ministers’ Meeting in Bali, Indonesia. Theme: Recovery, Re-imagine and Rebuild Stronger. The G20 presidency is scheduled to move from Indonesia to India in December 2022. Key Highlights Emphasized on the importance of sharing mutual experiences & working together to create a new world in which education …

Recently, The International Monetary Fund (IMF) approved a preliminary agreement with Sri Lanka on a four-year, USD 2.9 billion bailout package which is aimed at restoring economic stability and debt sustainability for the crisis-ridden south Asian nation. The Easter bomb blasts of April 2019 in churches in Colombo The government policy of lower tax rates and …

Recently, Computer Emergency Response Team – India (CERT-In) successfully designed & conducted the Cyber Security Exercise “Synergy” for 13 Countries as part of the International Counter Ransomware Initiative. The exercise was conducted as part of the International Counter Ransomware Initiative- Resilience Working Group which is being led by India under the leadership of National Security …

Recently, Delhi-based non-profit, Wildlife Trust of India (WTI) launched ‘Save the Whale Shark Campaign’ along Karnataka, Kerala and Lakshadweep in Mangaluru. August 30, 2022 is International Whale Shark Day, this year’s theme is “The Future of Sharks: Guardians of Our Seas.” Save the Whale Campaign The campaign will run along coastal Karnataka, Kerala and the Lakshadweep islands in …

With fears of a nuclear disaster at Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia power plant growing, the European Union has decided to pre-emptively supply 5.5 million Anti-Radiation Pills to be distributed among residents in the vicinity. These are unplanned or accidental events that create radio-nuclear hazard to humans and the environment. Such situations involve radiation exposure from a radioactive source and require prompt intervention …

Recently, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) which is located in one of the hottest and driest regions on earth, has been leading the effort to seed clouds and increase precipitation, which remains at less than 100 millimetres a year on average. UAE combined shooting water-attracting salt flares with releasing salt nanoparticles, a newer technology, into the …

Former President Ram NathKovind gave the message that an ‘ideal police system’ indicates that the job of a police officer is full of responsibility and accountability. Life and liberty are fundamental moral values and are held to be so in all human societies, and the police routinely have to decide whether …

Recently, the Minister of State for Electronics & Information Technology launched a report titled ‘Globalise to Localise: Exporting at Scale and Deepening the Ecosystem are Vital to Higher Domestic Value Addition’. Further, the government is focused on achieving the target of USD 300 billion in electronic production by 2026. The report …

Union government is planning to set up a national regulator PAREKH (Performance Assessment, Review and Analysis of Knowledge for Holistic Development) for achieving a benchmark framework to assess students at the secondary and higher secondary level. PARAKH, is also part of the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020. It’s a proposed regulator, which will act as …

Recently, the Supreme Court (SC) dismissed a writ petition challenging provisions of the Special Marriage Act (SMA), 1954 requiring couples to give a notice declaring their intent to marry 30 days before their marriage. The SC Rejected the petition on the grounds that the petitioner was no longer an aggrieved party as she had already solemnised her marriage under …

Ministry of Coal seeks to bring more than 2400 hectare of area in and around coalfieldsunder green cover. It has been aimed to plant more than 50 lakh saplings for the year 2022-23. The identified areas include reclaimed mined out areas of coal companies and areas outside of leasehold – amenable for plantation and made …

Recently, the World Bank has agreed to look into environmental damage from the under-construction VishnugadPipalkoti Hydro Electric Project (VPHEP) on the Alaknanda River in Uttarakhand. The panel has considered the request for an enquiry after accepting the Complaints from 83 Local Communities. Alaknanda River It is one of the headstreams of the Ganga. It …

Recently, the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment has said that only 402 online applications are received to avail benefits under SEED (Scheme for Economic Empowerment of Denotified, Nomadic and Semi-Nomadic Tribes). More than 10 crore Indians from 1,400 communities belong to these groups, as per the latest estimates available …

Recently, India – USA Joint Special Forces conducted the 13th edition of exercise Vajra Prahar2022 culminated at Bakloh (Himachal Pradesh). It’s an annual exercise is hosted alternatively between Special Forces India and the United States. Special Forces are the units of a country’s armed forces that undertake covert, counterterrorist, and other specialized operations. The …

The National Sports Day or Rashtriya Khel Divas is celebrated on 29th August every year in India as a tribute to hockey legend Major Dhyan Chand who was born on this date in 1905. The day was first designated and celebrated in 2012 as India’s National Sports Day. The nation celebrates the day honouring our …

Recently, the Union Home and Cooperation Minister addressed the First convocation of National Forensic Science University (NFSU). It was established by the Government of India in 2020 with the objective of fulfilling the acute shortage against the increasing demand for forensic experts in the country and around the world. The National Forensic …